So, I read the news today, and lo and behold—our honourable Supreme Court had taken suo motu action. Yes, that Latin phrase we all pretend to understand and nod at solemnly as if we were wearing black coats and quoting from legal files. Apparently, it means the court woke up…
Robert Clements is a journalist and newspaper columnist. With an estimated 6 million readership, his column, Bob’s Banter is published in over 30 newspapers and magazines in nearly every state in India, as well as in the top newspapers of Bangladesh, London and Dubai and is also translated into Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu.
Ping-Pong Wisdom..!
Two speeches. One I was invited to give. The other, I invited myself to speak at. Both occasions ended with a smattering of applause—polite, appreciative, and perhaps even a little relieved that I had finished. But that’s where the similarity ended. At the first one, held in a quiet, wood-paneled…
Not Goodbye but Good Morning..!
It’s a strange feeling, this thing called goodbye. Not the kind you say at airports—those are often filled with soggy handkerchiefs and promises to stay in touch, which evaporate faster than a politician’s promises after elections. No, I’m talking about the kind of goodbye that sneaks up on you while…
Are You a Perfect Pest?
You there! Yes, you—you who are politely reading this over a cup of coffee. I have a question for you. Have you ever been called… a pest? No, no, not the mosquito type, or the neighbour’s kid who presses every doorbell. I mean a perfect pest. The sort that causes…
Bridges Going Nowhere…!
“Interesting sculpture,” said a friend a year ago, as we drove past the Gokhale Bridge in Andheri, Mumbai, while pointing to the long cement arm reaching out dramatically into thin air, seven feet above the road, like some Olympian gymnast frozen mid-vault. “That’s no sculpture,” I muttered. “That’s a bridge.”…
Dare to be Aligned..!
This Saturday, I’ve been asked to speak to a gathering about my book DARE. Now, you’d think I’d strut in with a PowerPoint presentation, a rehearsed TED Talk tone, and the swagger of someone whose book has changed the world. No, I plan to do something far more dangerous. I’m…
Holding Onto Their Chair..!
Every now and then someone tells me with eyes wide and voice reverent, “You know, that national leader is old and still works twelve hours a day!” I nod solemnly, as if they’ve just informed me that said leader is personally holding the Earth’s orbit in place. And then I…
Stop Playing in the Sandpit…!
The ceasefire was announced a few days ago, but looks like we’re still playing in the sandpit of war. Yes, the sandpit, that noisy little patch where toddlers toss sand, build wobbly castles, and fight imaginary wars with plastic shovels. Only difference? Our sandpit has TV studios, hashtags, and anchors…
Disagreement Isn’t Disloyalty…!
The other day I made the mistake of saying I didn’t agree with a certain policy of the government. I should’ve just confessed to treason and asked for a firing squad. You see, in today’s patriotic India, there’s only one kind of citizen allowed—the clapping kind. The kind who applauds…
Blessed Are the Peacemakers…!
As fighter jets roared above and reports of “skirmishes”—because no one wanted to call it a war just yet—filled our newsfeeds, WhatsApp groups, and dinner table conversations, it was easy, almost fashionable, to pick a side. And by “side,” I don’t mean our country. That’s a given—we stand by her,…
Robert Clements is a newspaper columnist and writes a daily column, which has graced the pages of over 60 newspapers and magazines, from a daily column in the Khaleej Times, Dubai, the Morning Star, London, and in nearly every state in India, from The Statesman in Kolkata, to the Kashmir Times in Kashmir to the Trinity Mirror in Chennai.